RICCARDO DI SAN GERMANO

The first, ending in 1226, was commissioned by the monks of Montecassino and was intended merely as a continuation of the *Annales casinenses*, which reached the year 1212; its focus was the history of the monastery within the context of the Kingdom’s events. The second, written by the notary RICCARDO after he entered the service of Emperor Frederick II, instead treats the history of the Kingdom in itself, of which R. considers himself and proclaims himself a son; it begins with the death of William II, the ideal and perfect type of sovereign, and ends in 1243, the year of R.’s death. The chronicle, composed in both redactions with equal care, precision, and honesty, and interspersed with rhythmic Latin poems by R. himself, is the most reliable guide to the history of Frederick II and the Neapolitan provinces, thanks to the author’s firsthand experience of public life and his ability to obtain information either personally or through official documents, which he willingly inserts into the chronicle: papal and imperial letters or legislative texts such as the *Assise* of Capua and Messina.